Alex will start. Whether he'll play 80 minutes or not I'm not sure but he'll definitely start

The Wales speedster, who scored in the Lions' first Test win over Australia in Brisbane, returns to the Blues side for their first home match of the new campaign.

Davies saw his side edged out away to Glasgow in their RaboDirect PRO12 opener last weekend but with Cuthbert, Andries Pretorius and Lou Reed back available, things are looking up at the Arms Park.

"Alex will start. Whether he'll play 80 minutes or not I'm not sure but he'll definitely start," said Davies as he looked ahead to the challenge of Connacht.

While Cuthbert is set to feature on Friday night, fellow Lions Sam Warburton, Leigh Halfpenny and Gethin Jenkins are not yet ready to be involved.

"Leigh is still a week off and Gethin and Sam are progressing well," said Davies.

"When they're ready they'll be back but it's great to have Cuth available. Andries Pretorius is back too which is important so we're looking pretty healthy.

"Leigh is on a conditioning programme. We were hoping to have him available this week but it's a case of giving him a couple more days and hopefully he'll be available next week.

"Gethin is coming on really well and Sam is progressing from the early prognosis. They're both looking in good shape but with Gethin in particular, with all the effort he has put in, we'll give it another seven days to make sure."

Despite defeat at the Scotstoun Stadium, Davies is likely to keep changes to a minimum for the clash with Connacht, who started their season with a 25-16 win over Zebre. Cuthbert will come into the starting XV with Pretorius likely to start too. Reed will feature among the replacements.

"We're coming up against a good team in Connacht - they've brought a few players in but it's a game in which we expect to perform well and expect to win," said Davies.

"Craig Clarke - the Waikato Chiefs captain is a fantastic player. He will galvanise their team, Dan Parks is in his second season there and Pat Lamb has taken over the coaching so there'll be a slightly different emphasis on the way they play.

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